“Community Empowerment” launches the “Your Time is a Blessing” initiative to enhance institutional volunteerism in federal government agencies

The Ministry of Community Empowerment, in cooperation with the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources and the Emirates Foundation, launched the “Your Time is a Blessing” initiative, to establish a culture of corporate social responsibility and enhance the role of government agencies in serving society. Employees of federal agencies can join the “Your time is a blessing” initiative by registering on the (Volunteers.Emirates) platform using their job ID number, allowing them to access volunteer opportunities and document volunteer work hours in an organized and transparent manner. The initiative aims to enable federal government employees to use their time and expertise in qualitative community initiatives that contribute to supporting the development process and enhance the values ​​of giving, belonging and social responsibility.

The initiative is based on making volunteer work an integral part of the government work system, by facilitating employees’ access to volunteer opportunities, and organizing time to allow a portion of working hours to be allocated to participate in community initiatives, thus enhancing the spirit of participation and strengthening community ties.

The initiative also includes developing practical mechanisms that support the culture of volunteerism within government agencies, by linking volunteer leaves to the performance management system for employees, based on the guideline for volunteering in the work environment issued by the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources, which contributes to stimulating participation in an institutional manner, and enhances the UAE’s position in indicators of giving and volunteer work at the global level.


Aisha Yousef, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Community Empowerment, said: “The ‘Your Time is a Blessing’ initiative embodies the UAE’s belief that building society is a shared responsibility, and that government work is not limited to providing services, but rather extends to being an active partner in serving society. Through this initiative, we are working to enable federal government employees to direct their expertise and abilities towards specific community initiatives that enhance the values ​​of solidarity and cohesion, and contribute to supporting the process of sustainable development in the country.”

For his part, Director General of the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources, Faisal bin Butti Al Muhairi, said: “The ‘In Your Time is Blessing’ initiative embodies an extension of the Authority’s efforts to establish an inspiring, motivating and attractive future government work environment, as one of its most prominent strategic objectives. It also comes as a continuation of the volunteer work guide launched by the Authority at the federal government level, in a way that enhances the culture of institutional volunteerism and supports the integration of roles between job performance and community participation. The Authority is keen, through developing regulatory frameworks and policies Supporting the integration of volunteer work into the performance management system, in a way that achieves a balance between job excellence and community contribution, contributes to enhancing the quality of work life, and supports sustainable development goals.”
In turn, the CEO of the Emirates Foundation, Ahmed Talib Al Shamsi, said: “Volunteer work represents a fundamental pillar in building a cohesive and sustainable society, and this initiative contributes to expanding volunteer participation and empowering government cadres, in order to achieve a sustainable impact and enhance the culture of giving, in line with the Foundation’s directions in empowering society and enhancing impact.”

Employees of federal agencies can join the “Your time is a blessing” initiative by registering on the (Volunteers.Emirates) platform using their job ID number, allowing them to access volunteer opportunities and document volunteer work hours in an organized and transparent manner.
Bonus points will also be granted for volunteer efforts within the performance management system for federal government employees, where volunteer participation is calculated through the allocation of bonus points that increase with the increase in volunteer hours, and are reflected positively on the results of the annual performance evaluation, starting from five volunteer hours or more, which enhances the culture of giving and makes volunteer work an integral part of the government work environment.